Venice Island Performing Arts & Recreation Center

Events at the Performing Arts and Recreation Center

QUESTIONS FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS CENTER STAFF? Call their office at 215-685-3583.

FREE After-School and Evening Programming

From January 11 to March 12, VIPARC is offering free performing art networking opportunities for children and adults. Register at VIPARC after 2:00 pm on Mondays through Fridays. Children must be registered by parents or guardians. For more information, call Bill Powell at 215-685-3583 or email William.Powell at
phila dot gov.

This event, held on Saturday, May 16 at the Venice Island Performing Arts & Recreation Center, will be a celebration of outdoor recreation in the Manayunk area.

Site History

The ribbon cutting at Venice Island, held in October 2014, marked more than ten years of planning and preparation for the Performing Arts and Recreation Center. The Philadelphia Water Department originally committed to building a sewage overflow tank on Lower Venice Island. In response, the community secured funding for planning and invited the City departments to participate in creating a concept that would address the City’s concerns.

The result is a park, recreation, and performance center that is managed primarily by the Philadelphia Parks and Recreation Department. Designed by local landscape architecture firm Andropogon Associates, it is hoped that the park will become a recreational center in the neighborhood and region.

The new park includes state-of-the-art water features that demonstrate water retention in an urban environment, recreational facilities for basketball and outdoor performances, space for a dock, outdoor sculptures, a theater with 250 seats, and a parking lot with over 200 parking spaces. The site is accessed from both Cotton and Lock Streets.